Viennese school

Major operation: Cobra storm Vienna school

On Monday morning, Cobra and WEGA launched a major operation at the central vocational school on Linke Wienzeile in Vienna. A student is said to have seen another student with a weapon.

The central vocational school on Linke Wienzeile in Vienna-Mariahilf was surrounded by police cars in the morning hours. The pupils hid in their classes and peered frightened out of the windows. One pupil is said to have been spotted with a weapon and a protective vest.

Videos taken by a "Krone" reader reporter show pupils barricading themselves in the classrooms. They use everything they have at their disposal, such as chairs and desks.

Meanwhile, the Cobra task force and the WEGA stormed the school. A police tank also drove up. After searching the school floor by floor, the officers finally found the wanted pupil with a paintball marker and a toy weapon. Specifically, it was a compressed air weapon, a plaything for paintball games.

Weapon taken "for self-defense"
The circumstances are being clarified in ongoing investigations and the measures taken in the area of the school have been gradually scaled back, as the Vienna police announced on X. No one was injured or threatened in the incident. When questioned, the boy stated that he had the weapon with him "for self-defense".

School resumed during the course of the day. "We will analyze the exact circumstances as soon as they are available," wrote education councillor Christoph Wiederkehr on Platform X.